The Last Good Meal

Sepia and I were eating a fine meal at Dollar Bill's joint..."Bottom of The C" .  Ralph Scallion had fixed his world famous Seafood Jambalaya for her...It was hot and steamy and Sepia was really enjoying it...I had Jambalaya with Chicken and sweet Italian sausage.. It was equally hot and steamy....Very, Very tasty...As cooks went...It was an even toss up of who was the better cook, Ralph Scallion or Mabel Jenkins...Both knew their way around the kitchen!  Mabel was the nicer person of the two and not bad on the eyes at all!
Ralph, a known flirt and lothario could still rattle them pots and pans...I had eaten both of their cuisine and was just blessed to know them both!

"Kevin, this is exquisite." said Sepia..

"It is good....Ralph really put his foot in this food tonight." I said.

"Glad you likes." Laughed Ralph...The chef ...who overheard us..

"Oh Ralph....you've got to give me this recipe.." said Sepia...

"Can't do that Sepia...As much as I'd like to...You're Mabel's cousin....I can't have my chief rival going one up on me." he joked.

Even I knew that he didn't care...Everybody except Mabel's boyfriend, musician, "88" knew that Ralph had a thing for Mabel...My wife even knew....If Mabel offered to give Ralph some, He'd gladly turn over both recipes...

What neither my wife or Ralph Scallion could know is that although I was enjoying a nice carefree night out with my wife...I was actually working on a case...Marco Jervay, Who wasn't my client, but an informant of note had told me that three of the city's top and newest drug kingpins were meeting at this very restaurant tonight to discuss "business."  My client was actually Roscoe....Fathead Newton's number two man and enforcer...I kind of owed him a favor for his help in the Little Ricky Monday/Joe Dixon case so , as much as I didn't like the idea of working for a gangster like Fathead Newton, here I was observing...

Roscoe assured me that all he wanted was information....Nothing more from me...He and I both had already cleared it with Dollar Bill and he had arranged for the three young guns, Mingo Robinson, Bobby "Short Dawg" Low and "Two Guns" Sam Clemmons to sit at the largest table in the middle.  Long before the three arrived...Sean Jackson had planted micro-cameras in several spots and Peeping Tom and Lockpick Johnson had planted their micro listening devices at the table...

The three of them were in a van three blocks away recording and listening to everything being said by this trio.This looked as if it would be an easy afternoon of work...None of these three knew me at all so...to them, Sepia and I were just another young African-American couple enjoying a good meal..just like they were...
A fourth man...An older guy named Ralph Butler joined them...He acted as if he was chairing the meeting between them.

"Damn, this is some good grub baby." said Two Guns to no one in particular...He was chowing down, slurping and smacking...

Mingo Robinson just looked at him and shook his head....

''Aint you got no manners? Damn man you eat like a little kid." he said.

"Hey watch your mouth mane..." said Two Guns, who then broke into laughter...The entire table nervously broke into laughter..

"Pass me the rolls...This grub is slammin...You picked a classy joint Short Dawg." said Mingo...

Short Dawg...the only one who wasn't gabbing smiled and continued to eat his food slowly and deliberately...

"Well while we chewin, let's chat." said Ralph Butler, who reminded me a lot of Fathead's main man, Ralph Mole.

"Listen...We have all taken over a considerable amount of real estate....The only pieces we don't have is what Fathead Newton has in the West, The Diaz Brothers in Northern Liberties and maybe Ling Chou in Chinatown.." Said Mingo Robinson...

"The Diaz Brothers are weak...Most of their leadership is in the Slams and Minolo Diaz is ripe to get hit..Fathead Newton on the other hand is pretty strong...He's got a lot of soldiers...But if we take down the Diaz Brothers and hit Ling Chou...We would be big enough and bad enough to take him on." said Two Guns.

"Listen...If we organize and pool our resources..We bring in a solid hitter or two and we take Fathead, his enforcer, Roscoe and Ralph Mole down...We subsequently hit Ling Chou and Minolo Diaz...all in the same night...When the smoke clears...Whoever is left has to deal with us three and we just divide it up amongst us
like we been doing.." said Short Dawg...Obviously the leader and the smartest, possibly most deadly of the three.

I had enough recorded to turn this in and have all three of these simpletons indicted on conspiracy to commit murder charges...This probably was not what Roscoe had in mind.

II-

Sepia excused herself and went to the ladies room... I called the van with my android...

"Yo what's up?" I said.

"Kev...you should hear what they talkin about...Hittin Fathead, Roscoe, Ralph Mole, Ling Chou and Minolo
Diaz all in one night." said Sean Jackson.

"Wow...Creatin a whole new world order huh?" I laughed.

"You sure you wanna turn this in to Roscoe?" asked Sean...

"I know...This might just lead to more murders." I said.

"Yeah, but he's payin us well." said Sean.

''Always the moral compass huh Sean?"I said as we both laughed...

Something was amiss at that table....Short Dawg looked like he was turning blue...(If that was possible) He grabbed his neck...Sweat was running down his face profusely...He appeared to be choking...Mingo, Two Guns and Ralph Butler leaped from their chairs...a crowd of people were turning and looking....Short Dawg fell out of his chair on the floor..He kicked his legs up and then dropped them....He was very still...His eyes were wide open...but they no longer had a reflection....He was dead!!!

Sepia was returning from the restroom...Ralph Scallion and Dollar Bill went running towards the table...

"What the hell happened?" screamed Dollar Bill.

"He was fine....Then he started choking..." said Mingo...

Two Guns leaped out of his seat....

"What the hell kinda joint is this?" he screamed...

"Calm down ,Calm down...Call an ambulance" said Ralph Butler...

"For what? He's dead." said Mingo Robinson....

I paid my bill and Sepia and I walked to my car....

"You think it was food poisoning?" asked my wife.

"I hope not...We ate there too tonight." I said.

Hmmmmm, a meeting between three Top gangsters, major players all, A plot to wipe out the competition and before a phone call could be made...One of the players is no longer in the game....This looked to be bigger than it appeared.

(To Be Continued...)